Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Court Rules Massachusetts Facility Can Carry On With Electric Shock 'Therapy'
Reuters: Massachusetts Top Court Allows Electric Shock Therapy For Disabled Patients
A Massachusetts institution for the developmentally disabled can continue to use controversial electric shock devices to address aggressive or self-harming behavior in residents, the state's highest court ruled Thursday, though it left the door open to future challenges. In a unanimous ruling Thursday, the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts upheld a 2018 lower court ruling that the state acted in bad faith in regulating the Canton-based Judge Rotenberg Educational Center. JRC, which provides education and treatment to people with development disabilities and behavioral disorders, is the only institution in the country to use the treatment. (Pierson, 9/8)
Stateline: Sexual Assault Survivors Can Now Track Their Rape Kits In Most States
“The overarching purpose is to restore dignity and sort of try to tip the balance of power from folks who have been sexually assaulted,” said Colorado state Rep. Meg Froelich, a Democrat who authored her state’s rape kit tracking law, in an interview with Stateline.“What we’re trying to do is get folks to come forward,” she said, “and to feel that the process is there for them to achieve what they need for healing and closure.” (Hernández, 9/8)
Minnesota Public Radio: Push Begins In Minnesota To Let Terminally Ill Patients End Their Own Lives
Ellen Kennedy is on a mission to fulfill her husband’s dying wish — to create options for terminally ill patients that he was denied. Kennedy’s husband Leigh Lawton for years struggled with multiple myeloma — a form of blood cancer — before he died late last year. He underwent chemotherapy, a stem cell transplant, emergency treatments and had toxic reactions to medications. And toward the end, Kennedy said, all he wanted was a medication that would end his life. (Ferguson, 9/7)
Chicago Tribune: Young Chicago Workers Finding Their Place In End-Of-Life Care
At age 19, Mary Phelps stood at her grandmother’s bedside. In mere minutes, she would watch the woman with whom she had shared a home and a life take her final breaths. She held her grandmother’s legs, lightly massaging them as the seconds ticked by. “I just remembered her becoming so young in the face and relaxed,” Phelps said. “That’s when it came to me. Death can be calm and peaceful.” (Smith, 9/8)
News Service of Florida: Federal Appeals Court Will 'Expedite' A Florida Nursing Home Kids Case
A federal appeals court has agreed to speed up holding a hearing in Florida’s appeal of a ruling that would require changes aimed at keeping children with complex medical conditions out of nursing homes. The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said in an order Tuesday that it would “expedite” oral arguments in the legal battle between the state and the U.S. Department of Justice. Nevertheless, the arguments will not happen until after final briefs are filed on Dec. 6, according to a schedule in the order. (9/7)
Also —
The Washington Post: Police Didn’t Fully Secure Murder Suspect Who Fled D.C. Hospital, Chief Says
A murder suspect escaped from George Washington University Hospital on Wednesday because D.C. police officers did not secure one of his arms to a gurney as they changed his handcuffs in the emergency room, acting D.C. police chief Pamela A. Smith said. (Hermann and Davies, 9/7)
St. Louis Post-Dispatch: Mercy St. Louis Patient Dies After 8 Hours Unattended In ER
Kat Dunkus was doing better. She had moved in with her niece after completing an alcoholic treatment program two years ago. The program helped her learn better ways to cope with her schizophrenia and trauma. “She was trying to find her way back to more stability. She was trying to find happiness for herself,” said her niece Rachael Benns, 31, of Creve Coeur. “She kept saying, ‘I’m finally in a safe place.’” (Munz, 9/7)
